Hello, my ‘Walking with Jesus’ friends,
An election year is in full swing in America, and that means for the next several months there will be one word that best describes all the noise, the millions of dollars of advertising, the political rallies and even the barbershop conversations all over America. What is the Word? BLAME! In fact, I wonder if you’d agree BLAME is fast becoming the preferred response of business and education and health care and athletics and everyday normal people. But have you discovered BLAME is only constructive if met with RESPONSIBILITY.
Let’s rejoin Samuel and the people he was challenging as they faced a major dilemma and decision. For a long time, the people had been living in duality and hypocrisy. They delighted in their history, that Israel was a people God called His “Chosen People” and they lived in a land God had given to them. But they were a precarious people, too easily their fickle passions ran after the gods which the nations around them worshipped, even though they were man-made gods symbolized by golden calves or Asherah poles. So, Samuel had called them to responsibility by saying: “If you are returning to the LORD with all your hearts, then rid yourselves of the foreign gods and the Ashtoreths and commit yourselves to the LORD and serve Him only and the LORD will deliver you out of the hands of the Philistines.” (1 Samuel 7:3)
With those challenging words Samuel blended together the spiritual with the practical. Practically and painfully, especially the southern part of Israel, was frequently invaded by the vicious Philistines, very much like Hamas did to southern Israel Kibbutz communities on October 7th, last year. Samuel challenged the Israelites to see that God had withdrawn His hand of protection, allowing the Philistine army to ransack their towns, because many of the Israelite people had spiritually turned away from God in pursuit of the idols of the Philistines and other wicked nations. Samuel called the Israelites to decision and action. If they would choose to BE God’s people and worship the God of Israel alone, then they must physically get rid of the foreign idols among them and turn their hearts back to God.
Samuel promised that if they abandoned the foreign idols and would recommit themselves to the God of Israel then God would come to their defense and once again protect His people from the attacks of the Philistines. Samuel records for us how the people responded to this challenge: “So the Israelites discarded their Baals and Ashtoreths and served the LORD only. Then Samuel said, ‘Assemble all Israel at Mizpah and I will intercede with the LORD for you.’ When they had assembled at Mizpah… they fasted and prayed and there they confessed, ‘We have sinned against the LORD”. (1 Samuel 7:4-6) Oh my friends, please take careful note of what was happening here. Oh, how this is very similar to that which is needed in your city and mine!
First the Israelites listened carefully to Samuel’s wisdom. Second, they stopped blaming God for their defeat in battle, for the Philistine capture of the Ark, and for their fearful sense of vulnerability to the frequently attacking Philistines. They took responsibility for their pain and their plight and collected the idols among them and destroyed them. Finally, they turned to God in fasting and prayer and did the most important thing… they REPENTED! They acknowledged their sin; they didn’t give excuses or blame others. They turned from their sinful ways and turned back to fully focusing their hearts on Almighty, Holy God of Israel.
Now it’s important my friends that we don’t rush through that. Each step was important and if you’ll look closely at the normal behavior of your society and mine, you’ll find it almost NEVER happens in our day. People are way too quick to blame others rather than assume responsibility for themselves and admit their wrongs, their sins, and remove those things from their lives which are causing them to sin, and finally turn back to God.
Samuel next records that something very significant happened in Israel: “When the Philistines heard that Israel had assembled at Mizpah, the rulers of the Philistines rallied their soldiers and came up to attack Israel. And when the Israelites heard of it, they were afraid and they said to Samuel, ‘Do not stop crying out to the LORD our God for us, that He may rescue us from the hand of the Philistines.” (1 Samuel 7:7,8)
Oh, that is so often how it happens, isn’t it my friends? When someone who has been living in duality and blaming others for their misfortune finally turns to God and repents and removes from their life those people or things which have been drawing them down into the deep darkness… then before long the discouraging attacks come at them. Too often when that happens, they give up and run back into their addiction or past darkness. But if they’ll stay focused on God and call on other followers of Jesus to stand alongside them in truth and spiritual power, then God responds! Look at what Samuel did and what God did in response.
Samuel offered up the sacrifice and cried out to God on behalf of the repenting, worshiping Israelites, as the Philistines moved toward their attack positions. Samuel gives us this record of events: “While Samuel was sacrificing the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to engage Israel in battle. But that day the LORD God thundered with loud thunder and the Philistines were thrown into such a panic that they were routed before the Isralites… Then Samuel took a rock and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it ‘Ebenezer’ saying, ‘Thus far the LORD has helped us’. So, the Philistines were subdued and did not invade Israelite territory again. Throughout Samuel’s lifetime the hand of the LORD was against the Philistines.” (1 Samuel 7:10-12)
This, my friends, is one of the great defining moments in the history of Israel. The power of the spiritual encounter between Samuel and God and the repentant, fasting, praying people of Israel and God resulted in a very practical military outcome. Both in the initial victory there at Mizpah as the Israelite warriors defended those worshiping at Mizpah, and also defeated the attacking Philistines. But also, for the next several years as God protected and defended Israel from any Philistine strategy to invade or harm Israel.
Now friends, it should not be difficult for us to take the events of 1 Samuel 7 and transpose them to January 2024 and the very same location in the world… Israel, and the very same enemy the Philistines, Hamas and Hezbollah and other Iranian backed groups who hate Israel. Who is the modern-day Samuel calling modern Israel to rise up in repentance and turn to the God of Israel in full allegiance, expecting God will respond as He had promised Solomon in 2 Chronicles 7:14? And what about your city and mine, my friends all over the world.
Is God ready to defend His people who have put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ? What specific steps of responsibility and repentance do you think God is watching for in your city, your country and mine? And what is our role in this?
I think we should pause and talk with God about this right now, listening for what HE will say to you and to me and all who seek Him today. Here’s a song to help us consider the power of Samuel’s example, and the unchanging truthfulness of God…
Today’s Scripture is 1 Samuel 7:3-13.
Choose below to read or listen.
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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
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Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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